Rhizomes short. Basal sheaths stout, pale brown, dull, retaining dried leaf blades, sometimes decaying to fibers. Culms tufted, erect, rigid, trigonous, 22-95 cm tall, 1.1-2.2 mm in diam. Leaves borne on lower half and subequaling culm; blade flat, (3.7-)5-7.5 mm wide, midrib distinct abaxially. Inflorescence densely paniculate, brown, narrow, 6.5-9.5 × 0.8-2.3 cm; lowest involucral bract erect, leaflike, sometimes exceeding inflorescence; branches usually androgynous in upper part of inflorescence, those in lower part usually female, sometimes whole inflorescence composed of primarily female spikelets; spikelets unisexual. Lower inflorescence branches linear, stiffly appressed (lowest to 6 cm), androgynous or female, sometimes again branched, bearing spikelets to base. Female glumes cream or brown, with green midvein, narrowly ovate or oblong, encircling branch, 5.5-10 × 2-3 mm, midvein broad, 3-5-ribbed, apex aristate. Prophylls utriculiform, linear-lanceolate, (6-)8-11.3 × 1-1.6 mm, 2-keeled, keels minutely scabrid, herbaceous and strongly ca. 4-veined between keels, usually minutely hispid near margins above, margins fused from base to just below apex. Nutlets cream or pale brown, very narrowly ellipsoid, trigonous, 5.5-6.5 × 1.3-1.7 mm, shortly stipitate. Rachilla in female spikelets less than 1/2 length of nutlet. Stigmas 3. Fl. and fr. Jun-Oct.
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